GF: Cinnamon & Ginger-infused Beef with Spinach and Noodles

I was in the mood for soup. My love is in the mood for anything but soup. And I have rice noodles and spinach on hand. Hmm…what to do? Why, make both, of course! And no, I’m not an overachiever. This is just dinner. One of us with broth and the other without.

Cinnamon & Ginger Infused Beef with Spinach and Noodles
Two ways!
Ingredients:
6 cups broth (preferably beef, but I used chicken LOL)
1/2 cup GF soy sauce
1 Tablespoon chili paste or sriracha
6 cloves of garlic, mashed under a knife blade and sliced thinly
4 thin slices (1″ long, 1/8 – 1/4″ thick) ginger, mashed under a knife blade
1/2 shallot, diced
2 Tablespoon olive oil
2 pounds round bottom roast or flank steak, sliced thinly
12 ounces spinach leaves, washed
1/2 package rice noodles, pho style or medium width (like for pad thai)
2 eggs, cracked and blended together (for stir fried noodles)

Making the stock/Infusing the Beef & Softening the noodles

  1. Place the noodles in a large dish covered with cold water. Let set while you work on the stock.
  2. Heat a large stock pot.
  3. Add olive oil and heat.
  4. Add chili paste, garlic, ginger, shallots.
  5. Stir until well fragrant (1-2 minutes).
  6. Add broth and soy sauce.
  7. Simmer for 10-15 minutes until flavors are well seeped/blended,covered.
  8. Strain the broth to remove the cinnamon sticks and ginger pieces.
  9. Add thinly sliced beef and simmer until beef is just barely cooked.
  10. Add spinach to broth and remove from heat. Stir the spinach into the broth gently and recover Set aside.

Dish One: Stir-fried rice noodles with egg

  1. In a wok or frying pan (with high sides), heat 1 teaspoon of olive oil over medium heat.
  2. Add egg and stir continuously with a rubber heat-resistant spatula.
  3. Just as eggs are set, add as many rice noodles as you wish (one huge handful +)
  4. Add one more teaspoon olive oil. Stir noodles and mix together with egg completely and thoroughly.
  5. Scoop out 2/3 cup of broth (broth only!) from the stock pot and add to the noodles and egg. You may need to add more/less liquid at this stage depending on how many noodles you have.
  6. Stir and mix everything together well until noodles are tender and have absorbed liquid.
  7. After reserving beef/spinach/broth for dish #2, remove remaining beef and spinach and mix together with noodles in a large bowl.
  8. Serve and enjoy!

Dish Two: Noodle Soup

  1. Heat a pan of water large enough for the noodles you desire for your soup.
  2. Cook noodles 3 minutes or until al dente. (Remember: Rice noodles are soft and will continue to soften in the soup broth!)
  3. Drain noodles well.
  4. Add noodles to a bowl for serving.
  5. Spoon beef, spinach and broth to cover.

Serving tips for both dishes:
Top with: chopped chives, sugar-snap peas stir-fried with garlic/soy sauce, or peanuts.
Enjoy!

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